EUR/USD Performance Chart as at 3:30 a.m. Singapore time, 19/04/11

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HISTORICAL DETAILS 

% Change

1 Wk -1.59%

1 Month 1.32%

3 Months 6.12%

6 Months 1.95%

1 Year 4.66%

 

52 WEEK

High 1.4520

Low 1.1877

 

BLOOMBERG MEDIAN FORECASTS

Q2 2011 1.41

Q3 2011 1.38

Q4 2011 1.37

Q1 2011 1.35

 

DAILY DETAIL

The euro slumped against the dollar today as concern increased that Greece will be forced to restructure its debt, and uncertainty grew over a bailout for Portugal. The euro was last trading down 1.5% at $1.4210, with the session low at $1.4155 - a two-week low. Rising risk aversion generally weighed on the eurozone single currency after Standard & Poor's, while affirming the 'AAA/A-1+' sovereign credit rating on the United States, revised its outlook on the long-term rating to negative from stable. [1] The impact on the euro was greater because Europe's problems are already manifest. While US fiscal tensions are increasing, the United States is far from defaulting on its debt. The prospect of an actual default by the US on debt issued in its own currency isn't a realistic worry, in a financial market that has a lot more real worries to deal with (including genuine eurozone default risks). The euro's rise has stalled since it hit a 15-month high last week, though market players expect it to be supported by prospects of another rise in eurozone interest rates. Earlier, reports surfaced in a Greek newspaper that Greece had told the IMF and the European Union this month it wants to restructure its debt, though it pared losses as a finance ministry source in Athens said the story was untrue. Paolo Palazzi-Xirinachs, Chicago

 

Notes: Source: [1] Bloomberg News (18 April 2011), [2] Reuters UK (18 April 2011), [3] Sydney Morning Herald (18 April 2011), [4] New York Times (18 April 2011). Chart data supplied by Bloomberg.